Living in the South

If you live in the south, there are two words that come out of your mouth the second you sit down at a restaurant. No, not, “wine list?” or “coffee, please”. The two words are “sweet tea.” Winter, spring, summer or fall. Doesn’t matter. It’s tea and it’s sweet. I realized how crazy this was the other night when my husband and I were eating at a small local restaurant that was seriusly lacking in the heat department. We were practically shivering, but that didn’t stop us from gulping down a couple of glasses of sweet iced tea.

When I make it at home, Agave Nectar is my sweetner of choice. It doesn’t flavor it like honey does, and for whatever reason, I feel it’s healthier than just plain old bleached white sugar. It probably isn’t, but please don’t enlighten me, let me live my Agave dream.

Agave is definitely healthier than refined sugar! It is lower on the glycemic index (i.e. you won’t get diabetes from eating it).

I’d never heard of sweet tea until my high school bf told me this funny story about his parents’ first date. His mom was from the south (NC) and his dad was from the northeast (NY). They went to this restaurant up here and his mom kept ordering iced teas. At the end of the night the bill was ridiculously high because she kept drinking them like water – since in the south, refills are free! She had no idea that it was different in the north.

yes, you’re so right! whenever we go out up here.. there are only a small handful of restaurants that carry our beloved SWEET tea. and all of them are chains that originate from the SOUTH! LOL sooo can’t wait to get back to the south!

Where in the world do you find that sweetner? I am a converted southerner from the north, and I like my tea UNsweet. I am not a lover of sugar at all. I know, a little strange, but true. But just the same, I love my iced tea, summer, spring, winter or fall. Freezing *ss cold and all.

When I moved to Georgia from the midwest, I was amazed that sweet tea was the default and you have to actually say “unsweetened” if that’s how you prefer it. I got hooked on sweet tea while living there.

As a transplanted Northerner in Texas, I have come to love sweet tea. It is the only thing I drink when I go to a restaurant. I must try the agave sweetener, as I have seen it in my local health food store. Maureen

As a GA girl living in CT I have to make my sweet tea at home in order to have any, but it keeps me true to ordering only water when we eat out so it’s not all bad. I always order it when we’re visiting family in GA though!

Can you give any tips on proportions and technique when making it with the agave nectar? I would love to get away from regular sugar in my tea, but I won’t touch artificial sweeteners with a 10 foot pole.

At one point, we had to take a trip up north from Knoxville, and took my assistant with us. In a restaurant we had often frequented, where we were known, she ordered tea. I immediately translated for the waitress, “Bette, she means iced tea, not hot, and she doesn’t know she’ll have to stir in her own sugar.” Everyone laughed. I used to laugh at ordering “Tea, un.”

Growing up I never liked tea. I didn’t know you could drink tea that wasn’t sweet. Later in life unsweetened tea was a revelation. Finally I have come full circle and like it both ways but I never make sweet tea myself. I too would like some advice on the perfect tea to sweetener ratio.

Just so you know, dahling, and this will keep you in smiles for a while too. Agave nectar is an EXCELLENT sweetner, and because it’s not processed like sugar or sugar substitutes it is in fact WAYYYY healthier for you than it’s processed counter-parts.

If you don’t believe me, check out the two skinny minnies that wrote the book “Skinny Bitch” I literally JUST read that today in that book.

You’re feeling righteous now aren’t you? Good … that’s what I was going for there!!!

Enjoy the sweet tea, since I’m from the north … I like mine straight up and unsweetened. I know crazy weird!!!

My mom sometimes thinks there was a mix up at the hospital when I was born because I hate sweet tea or any tea for that matter. Everyone else in the family loves it. Dead leaves steeped in water….that’s swamp water to me 😉

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One of the very nicest things about life is the way we must regularly stop whatever it is we are doing and devote our attention to eating. ~Luciano Pavarotti and William Wright, Pavarotti, My Own Story